Florida Hunter Safety Course

Game Animals

Wild Hog

The wild hog found in Florida is a descendent of a domestic hog; it is not a native animal. They were first introduced around 1539 by Spanish explorers. Some animals escaped from their captors and adapted well to life in the wild. In Florida, wild hogs are considered domestic animals and are the property of the landowner upon whose land they occur. However, in areas such as wildlife management areas, hogs are generally classified as legal game and will be governed by specific regulations during the hunting season. According to studies, many of the wild hogs in Florida are infected with swine brucellosis. This is a very serious disease, which can be transmitted to people who come in contact with infected blood. When cleaning hogs, rubber gloves should be worn and then burned along with all clothing soiled by blood from the hog. The disease cannot be contracted from eating the cooked meat.